Skills for Life: Exercise For All
Exercise for all is a Skills for Life unit in which learners take part in a range of exercise activities, learn the physical and mental wellbeing benefits of exercise and, from Entry 3 upwards, follow, plan or design a one week exercise schedule and reflect on it. It is one 20 hour unit that learners combine with others into a Pearson Skills for Life Award, Certificate or Diploma, from Entry 1 to Level 2, and it is assessed internally by the centre. Literacy sits in stating, describing and explaining benefits, following safety instructions, saying how exercise made them feel and giving reasons for a plan. Numeracy is light: planning frequency and duration and recording how long each session lasted.
- Awarding body
- Pearson
- Level
- Entry Level 1 to Level 2
- Guided learning hours
- 20
- First taught
- September 2027
- Amount of literacy work
- Medium
- Amount of numeracy work
- Low
- Specification
- Open the specification
How this unit is assessed
- Entry Level (Entry 1, Entry 2, Entry 3): One assessment criterion at each Entry level: learners state (Entry 1), outline (Entry 2) or identify (Entry 3) the physical and mental wellbeing benefits of exercise through taking part in simple exercise activities, and at Entry 3 also follow a basic exercise schedule. Evidence is assessed internally by the centre through a centre-devised assignment, which can be based on Pearson's Authorised Assignment Brief, and is quality assured by Pearson standards verification. 20 guided learning hours.
- Level 1 and Level 2: One assessment criterion at each level: at Level 1 learners plan and take part in a simple one week exercise schedule and describe its physical and mental wellbeing benefits, and at Level 2 they design and take part in a balanced schedule, explain its benefits and reflect on how to improve it. Evidence is assessed internally by the centre and quality assured by Pearson standards verification. 20 guided learning hours.
Skills that use Connectives and syntax
-
Giving reasons for choices in an exercise plan
Level 2 learners give reasons for each type of exercise, its timing and frequency in their plan, linked to specific physical and mental health benefits, and reflect on how they could improve the plan. Level 1 learners plan a simple schedule and reflect on which exercises were most beneficial. This is required by the assessment criteria.
Literacy: Planning and organising for different purposes, audiences and context, Connectives and syntax
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils choose two activities for a class fitness week and write one reason for each using so that and because.
- Year 8
- Pupils annotate a given weekly exercise plan with a reason beside each session, then add one suggestion to improve it.
- Year 9
- Pupils write a short justification for their own weekly exercise plan, explaining each choice and how they would change the plan after trying it.
Show the specification wording and the LNF statements
Where it is in the specification: Unit SfL 10, assessment criteria Level 1 and Level 2, page 51; Essential information for assessment decisions, Level 1 and Level 2, pages 52 to 53
“giving reasons for their choice of each type of exercise included in their plan”
Progression step 3
I can use and adapt different structures within my writing, e.g. reporting an event, investigation or experiment.
I can use an increasing range of connectives to organise my ideas in sentences, paragraphs and whole texts.
Progression step 4
I can adapt my writing style, choosing and using the best structures for different contexts and purposes, e.g. to successfully describe, explain, persuade, discuss.
I can use summary, discussion of issues, detailed explanations and logic when covering a topic.
Good to know
- The unit is listed as "SfL 10 Exercise for all 20", so it is 20 guided learning hours (Unit summary, page 5).
- A unit can be passed only once: "Learners can only achieve each unit once, at a single level" (Rules of Combination, page 6).
- Evidence is flexible, so spoken or practical evidence can count: "there are no mandatory evidence requirements and centres can select the type of evidence" (Essential information for assessment decisions, page 52). Assignments "can include both practical and written tasks" (Assessment of units, page 9).
- Evidence must be recorded, not assumed from taking part: "achievement cannot be inferred from performance" (Internal assessment, page 9).
- AI may be used only if the work stays the learner's own: "the final submission must be in the learner's own words and reflect their own effort" (Requirements relating to permitted/prohibited resources, page 54).
- Pearson's Annexe C lists numeracy as "Frequency and duration of exercise; simple data collection" with mood ratings and heart or breathing rate as examples (page 162), but only the frequency, time and duration of exercise appear in the assessment guidance.
Links with other qualifications
The closest WJEC qualifications are GCSE Physical Education and Health, which asks for far more extended writing and data work on training and fitness, and the VCSE and Foundation in Sport and Leisure. Explaining wellbeing benefits and reflecting on feelings links to the WJEC Skills Suite unit Mental health and wellbeing and to GCSE English Language and Literature oracy. Compared with the WJEC Exercise for all unit, both are 20 guided learning hours, but the Pearson unit's literacy is concentrated in describing benefits and justifying a one week exercise schedule, while the WJEC unit also asks learners to communicate with others in group activities and to set and review measurable fitness goals.
Source: Pearson Entry Level 1 to Level 2 Skills for Life Award, Certificate and Diploma Qualifications specification, Issue 1, August 2026, Unit SfL 10: Exercise for all.